Boy, 14, accused of possessing €40,000 of drugs

A JUDGE has allowed the state four weeks to obtain the directions of the Director of Public Prosecutions in the case of a 14-year-old boy accused of possessing €40,000 worth of cannabis.

The out-of-school teen-ager was charged in June at the Dublin Children’s Court with possessing cannabis with intent to supply at his home address.

He was remanded in custody for a month for behavioural and psychological assessments, which subsequently found he had a “multitude of needs”.

He was granted bail last week, on the condition that he obeyed a nightly curfew.

He appeared at the Children’s Court again yesterday, where Judge Elizabeth MacGrath heard that more time was needed to obtain directions from the DPP.

She also noted that the boy, who was accompanied by family members, had not broken his bail conditions.

The judge remanded him to appear before the court in four weeks.

Earlier, the teenager’s Garda juvenile liaison officer (JLO) said a diversion project would be made available to the boy.

The boy has also been ordered to stay out of a west Dublin district after the JLO told the court, “that [area] is where major problems arise, with the lads he is hanging out with”.

“It is for his own safety and to have a chance to stay out of trouble,” the JLO added.

The teenager, who has been out of school for nearly a year, has also been ordered to attend any training or educational course placement arranged for him.

The proceeding also heard that his case could go forward to the Circuit Court, which has wider sentencing power.